Aug 12, 2020 - Let's get going......

Things I forgot to mention: Once some of the restrictions were lifted Gen did manage to get his lower dentures made up – so no more whistling whilst talking and we can eat next to normal. Although it was not encouraged to visit each others boats, we did have on numerous occasions Pete and Kerri over for dinner, which was great fun. Ended up with a bit of a lockdown tummy pounch. One of the projects which needed completing was going up the mast – Gen made this climbing apparatus which got him up the mast and fitting our tri colour light...

Aug 2, 2020 - Our winter 2019 / 20

For a while I was not planning on keeping a (b)log but have decided this has been an unprecedented time that it would be good to keep some sort of written memory of the past 8 or so months. So I begin or rather continue for the Summer 2019 blog. Winter 2019/20 We arrived in our berth in Lefkas marina at the beginning of November in a new berth on B pontoon (which is a distance away from F and G party pontoons). Doug and Josie are on Windsong a couple of boats down and there are one or two other liveaboards on this pontoon too. Wintering in...

Jul 3, 2020 - Santorini

When the boat arrived in Santorini harbour, I was overwhelmed by the reception of both humans and animals! The donkeys descended thick and fast down some of the steepest terrain I have ever seen, rushing to meet the ferry and haul the load of tourists up the steep steps to the town perched on the rocks above. Santorini is a submerged volcano that erupted eons ago, leaving a caldera behind. Its steep rock faces are covered with whitewashed villas clinging to the rock face like vines on a brick wall. There is a tradition in Santorini of...

Jun 1, 2020 - Naxos

Naxos is a bigger island than Paros and much larger than Antiparos. I found a lovely little room in a four-plex which even has a communal fridge and a tiny balcony overlooking a rather overgrown garden. Every morning I would wander into the village to buy fresh bread and watermelon for my breakfast -- heaven! I've explored the island on foot, following the rutted roads and pathways that criss-cross the island. Olive groves with lounging goats and sheep are everywhere and the air has a rich, dusty smell to it. I am so totally relaxed after...

Apr 28, 2020 - Paros

Boats to the Aegean Islands leave from the nearby community of Piraeus. I was told the trip to Paros would be a "few hours"......which turned into a gut-wrenching 8 as we stopped at various and sundry islands on the way. The seas were quite rough and I made the mistake of having some very rich coffee and yogurt for breakfast which didn't stay in my stomach for long. I spent most of the trip on deck! My first glympse of Paros was magical. A typical Greek island village, whitewashed with flashes of brilliant turqoise and teal, met my gaze....

Mar 28, 2020 - Athens at last!

After a grueling bus and train ride from Budapest, crossing many borders and varying geography, I have arrived in Athens. I found a lovely room in a small hotel overlooking a square in the Plaka , the old town centre of Athens. It has a beautiful curving wooden balcony that extends out in the square where old men sit on benches surveying the bustling life going on around them. The Plaka fairly pulsates with activity, between the bars and restaurants, the shops and markets, no one stands still for long. Yet, for all its life, Athens is so...

Nov 18, 2019 - Leros

Ciao ragazzi , vi presento la mia isola : Leros.Si trova in Dodecaneso.Venite a trovarmi.La mia mamma lavora in un albergo con i turisti.Quando ero piccola andavo a pescare in gommone con il mio papa'.Ora vado a nuotare.Il mare qui e' bellissimo! Ciao e votate il mio post. Antonella

Nov 18, 2019 - It's a wrap!

Back on dry land Lois writing We are adding some photos here that we weren't able to post last week; now that we're home, it's a lot easier to access our files. Our Road Scholar tour ended on Friday morning November 15, when we had our last breakfast on the boat, and then were transported by bus to the Athens airport. Most of the group was flying out that day, and many of them had plans to stay overnight somewhere in the States after they landed. There are no direct flights to the US from Athens, so everyone would be changing planes in...

Nov 15, 2019 - Last day on board the ship

John writing now Today the weather was perfect, 60 – 70 degrees with bright sunshine and no wind. We boarded our bus at 8:30 AM for the 30 minute drive to Epidavros to see a large ancient theater, and the first place where organized “health care” took place. Basically you came here, slept in a dorm, and waited for the gods to tell you in a dream how to be cured. There were no statistics on the cure rate. The restored theater seated 15,000 people, and the acoustics are still incredible. In the rest of the complex, all that is left are...

Nov 13, 2019 - Nafplion

Lois writing This morning we woke up in Nafplion (you don’t really pronounce the F), where we had docked last night at 10 PM. We were still up and about at that time, and the scene was one out of a storybook, with an illuminated castle up on a big hill overlooking the town. We were really looking forward to exploring the castle, but today it is raining on and off, so that adventure has been postponed until tomorrow. We drove by bus to the tomb of Agamemnon, which is a huge beehive shaped structure built underneath a hillside. All along the...

Nov 12, 2019 - Monemvasia

Lois writing These next few entries into the blog will have to be entered later than we would prefer. As I mentioned, the internet on the boat is spotty, and we were allotted a limited amount of data usage. By Tuesday, both John & I had gone over the limit and it would cost a bundle to add more. We have not been doing anything extreme like watching movies, but John attributes the problem to the photo work that he has been doing to transfer some pictures from our phones. That way they can be resized and then transferred into the My Trip...

Nov 11, 2019 - Pylos

Lois writing The boat traveled overnight from Sunday to Monday November 11 along the west coast of the Peloponnese, leaving an hour or so after dinner. They suggested that we take a seasickness pill beforehand - they supply them free on the boat, but I brought my own. The seas are definitely more active now that we are in the Ionian Sea, rather than in the shelter of the Gulf of Corinth. It wasn’t too bad – nothing went flying off shelves, and we fell asleep with bright moonlight shining in the window of our cabin. The boat docked just at 8...